Surf’s Up, Condensed: Top Creativity Links for August 21, 2012

David Burkus, a professor of management at Oral Roberts University and editor of LDRLB, discusses recent studies that confirm that the human desire for certainty tends to block acceptance of creativity, even when people say they appreciate creativity. He has great advice for ways to bridge that certainty gap:

If the implicit bias against creativity is triggered by uncertainty, then crafting your pitch to maximize certainty should improve the odds of the idea being accepted. You can do this in a variety of ways. Reaffirming what the client or your manager knows is true about their project should prime them to be more accepting of novel ideas. Connecting the idea to more familiar ideas, such as previous successful projects or similar works, will also increase the odds that your idea will be seen as practical and desirable. Lastly, try leading clients toward your idea with a series of statements they agree with and then pitching your idea as if it’s theirs. Thus, counteracting the bias against creativity with an even more powerful bias – the bias for our own ideas!

Humorous brief article pointing to the site Help Me Be Fucking Creative – a site for designers which with each refresh, spits out new advice spits out from an algorithm, such as “get away from the computer,” “break the rules” or “get feedback.” It’s a nice jolt when you feel stuck.

Mike Brown of Brainzooming offers more than two dozen ways to shake off the creative doldrums. Favorite tips include: host a creative happy hour, stop everything, laugh like crazy, embrace mindless activity, and doodle and eat. The post offers a nice range of possible activities, including ones you don’t have to go anywhere or spend any money to do.